The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-12-20
BILL ARP.
What He Thinks of the Tariff
Question.
UNCLE SAM AND PROTECTION.


about the tariff. What is the tariff, any
how?'
= "Well, my children, there is rich old gen.
aeman whom the people call Uncle Sam, ard
he has big plantation and lots of land and
ne has very large family of boys, most Of
whom are farmers. But one boy by the name
Of Crispin took notion to shoe making, and
another named Vulcan took notion to make
aron, but they couldn't make enough shoes
and iron to do the farmers, and so some out
eiders came along and began to undersell Girls
pin and Vulcan, and Uncle Sam got mad
about it. Crispin was selling his shoes at So
@ pair, but these outsiders proposed to sell
theirs at 81 pair, and the other boys wanted
to buy them, but Uncle Sam said
No, Crispin can't make them at that price and
make any money, so he made the outsiders
pay one dollar pair on every pair of shoes
they brought to the plantation, and he took
that dollar and put it in his pocket. Then the
outsiders had to ask two dollars for their
shoes, just like Crispin was doing You see,
the old man had to oversee all the boys and he
paid himself for doing it out of this money.
Just so he made the outside iron menSpay him
siX dollars atom on every ton of iron they
brought and wouldn't allow!them to sell it any
cheaper than Vulcan was selling it.
Now all this money that Uncle Sam got
from the outsiders is called the tariff But the
farmer boys have mover liked it., and
Want to trade with outsiders and get
things cheap. Uncle Sam charges these
outsiders something ON most everything
they bring and he is getting rich--very rich
IT is now hundred millions year more than
be has any use for, and SO the farmer boys are
making big fuss and want the tariff reduced
80 that they can get their goods Cheap
But, papa, why can't Crispin and Vulcan
Lwork as cheap as the outsideIS?"
: My children, there is where all the trouble
comes in These outsiders get their labor at
fifty cents a day, and it is barely enough to
live on. Their laborers are so many that they
will work for almost nothing rather than
Starye. They have poor food and poor cloth
ing and live in shanties, and their little chill
dren nearly freeze in the winter and have
hard time, but Grispin and Vulcan pay their
hands dollar day, and Uncle Sam says that
IFS right, and he won't allow any poor people to
suffer of his plantation"
"But, papa, why don't Crispin and Vulcan
quit their business and go to farming too. and
then these outsiders could come in and sell
sgrs." W W O' Ni''"p " '''0 ''' !"
q because, my children, there are so many
farmers now they can hardly live. Crispin
and Y uioan and all their work nleu NOW slx
corn, and -four and meat from the farmers
and that helps good DEAL but if everybody
Was farming there would be nobody to buy
from them, and these outsiders would soon
put their shoes away up to three dollars pair,
zion is good thing, and keeps business lively
Rnd prosperous all round. Then there is an
other reason why CriSpin and Vulcan don't
quit All their money is in their business, and
If they quit 1t they lose it. They don't know
anything about farming, and they couldn't
get start if they did,
; The world moves and SO does the nation.
Mr.. Cleyeland's message has shaken her up
and something is going to be done. We have
been brooding and fuSsing over this tariff
l,1,4 Sc 20,
Mr.. Cleveland is the peoples president and
the people demand reduction. Wo be to the
man Or the party that says nay Ten million
surplus month is an outrage. One hundred
and twenty millions year drawn from the
people and locked up in the treasury. Uncle
Sam is mean to his children, mean as dog.
Who ever heard of a father getting rich off of
his children after that tashan. Ipada dollar
and half for CARTS hat and two dollars for
his long pants and I'm mad about it. [ could
many for half the money. I'm writing
on a letter pad now that cost
me twenty-five cents, and if it wasn't for the
tariff L could have bought it for fifteen.
Plague take the tariff. l want it taken off of
clothing right away. I've sold my sheep and
I want it taken off of wool. Joe Brown has
quit buying my corn and oats and hay for his
mines, and now L want it taken off of pig-iron.
I am opposed to protecting Joe Brown unless
he protects me. When iron plants are planted
at Gainesville, maybe ! will be for protec-
ton, but l've got no infant industry now. We
have quit the infant business at my house. 1t
takes these infant industries a powerful long
time TO get grown. / wonder il thew will ever
lquit sucking the bottle, Or get big enough to
stand alone. When man goes to one of
these manufacturing cities, everybody is strut
ting around as big as watch, and the
banks are full of money, and land is
worth two hundred dollars a front foot
but just let congress talk about reducing the
tariff, and they scrooch up and pull asmall bot
tie from under their coat tails and 60 to sucking
and whine ont: I'm an infant-a poor little
4nfant-aint you gwine to protect me? Are
you gwine to take away my pap and leave me
an orfun?"
But now, in all sincerity, this tariff business
has got three or four sides to it, and it don't be-
come any OF us common folks to be concerted
about il. For half a century it has perplexed
The wisest statesmen of the nation. We admire
Mr.. Cleveland's pluck and his unselfsh
patriotism, but Mr.. Cleveland knows no more
about the tariff than Randall or Carlisle or
Watterson or Pat Walsh or THE CoNsTITU-
6IoN, or a host of other thinking men. They
have all studied it and pondered over it for
years, and conscientiously differ about it,
Calhoun and Clay and Webster differ
ed, and SO when L hear
small politician blowing his bugle horn
and swearing he'll be dogond if it amt thus
and so I'm disguised. One time q conceited
young preacher calledi on Mr.. Calhoun who
was very sick, and began right away to talk to
him about religion and making preparation
for death. Mr. Calhoun waved his hand for
him TO go and said che presumes to instruct
me OH a subject that have pondered all my
life"
Let us have confidence in our statesmen, for
many Of them are away above party when the
welfare of the nation is at stake. They win
harmonic this thing in the best way possible.
Nobody contends for free trade now. 1t will
come sometime unless we lock our doors
against immigration and the cheap labor Of
Europe, but we won't worry about that now.
Everybody wants a eduction-eyerybOdy.
The wool grower wants reduction on every
thing but wool. The iron mon want
q reduction on everything but iron,
and il is just SO with the sugar planter, and
glass manufacturer and every other industry
that is protected. We are all iustlike Artemus
Ward was about the war when he said the
union must be preserved even il no had TO
sacrifice all his wife's brothers, and cousins
and unclcs.
There are a million wool growers who ar
making as big a fuss over the presidents mese
age as the bees make in hive when you
want little OF their honey. There are iily-
millions Of people in the nation and forty-nine
millions say take a slice off Of wool. There
are two millions engaged in the iron and stee